


the gods chose you and so did i

by lucyissleepy



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Doctor Haruno Sakura, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Lovers, Hatake Kakashi is a Little Shit, I Will Go Down With This Ship, I'll tag as I go, Lawyer Sasuke, M/M, No character bashing, Ooc Sasuke, but not really, fox spirit naruto, updating soon!
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-17
Updated: 2021-02-17
Packaged: 2021-03-12 00:55:21
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 10,026
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29501634
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lucyissleepy/pseuds/lucyissleepy
Summary: sasuke really just wanted to survive his college years as he prepared to take over the uchiha corporation. what he didn't need, was to go saving a nine tailed fox in the forest, and yet here he was, laying next to what appeared to be the fox he'd saved in a really hot human form. he guessed he could add magical creature(?) rescues to his resume.an au in which sasuke's an overworked law student and naruto's a fox spirit.
Relationships: Uchiha Sasuke/Uzumaki Naruto
Comments: 4
Kudos: 21





	1. Chapter 1

Sasuke walked along the dirt path, carefully avoiding the tree roots that grew across the path. He’d long since memorized the path’s tricks, and knew exactly where the cracks and roots hid, trying to trip any inexperienced hiker that came along. Sasuke had always enjoyed hiking, it was something that calmed him during the intense stress of college. As a junior in college trying to get a PhD in law before he took over his family’s corporation, Sasuke was incredibly overworked. His time for hikes were few and far in between, but the days when he was able to drive out to the Konoha Forest, he always felt completely at peace. The forest had the uncanny ability to calm his mind and body completely. 

Over the years Sasuke had lived here, he had visited the forest hundreds of times, and had developed a kind of sixth sense. The dark haired boy paused his leisurely stroll, and closed his eyes, listening for the natural noise of the forest. His brows furrowed together as he realized that the uneasy feeling he’d had since he turned down this path was due to the absolute silence of the forest around him. The forest was never completely silent; the calls of a bird or the soft clicking of a bug always echoed through the trees. The natural noises prevented a silence that forced Sasuke to think about the work he had to do, or the project he needed to finish. This time however, there were no birds singing in the trees, nor were there the clicking or croaking of any small insect or animal. There was simply an eerie silence that put Sasuke on edge. He had half a mind to retrace his steps, take the other path to avoid this strange absence of wildlife. The pale boy stood still for a moment longer, before turning around and beginning the walk back to the main path. 

He had barely gone a meter before he heard it; a small whine that cut through the silence and forced him to freeze one again. He waited a bit, wondering if the noise had been his imagination. Sighing, he turned around and walked off the path, towards where he thought the noise had come from. Sasuke could practically hear Sakura’s chiding,  _ don’t go off the path!, _ she always told him in that annoying motherly tone when he told her he was going for a hike. _ She worries way too much, _ he thought, carefully moving a branch out of the way as moved farther into the forest and away from the safety of the dirt path. 

The eerie quiet unnerved him, and the crunch of the branches beneath his feet cut through the silence in a way that made him feel like the main character in one of those Stephen King movies Shikamaru loved so much. Another high pitched whine silenced his thoughts completely, and Sasuke almost jumped in surprise. He hadn’t really thought whatever made the noise was real, he’d mostly just wanted to leave the path and get away from the silence that seemed to surround this area. 

With new determination, Sasuke picked up his pace and walked through the dense forest a bit more before he came to a clearing. The forest glade seemed incredibly out of place, especially since the trees around it grew so close together Sasuke had to suck in his breath and move sideways through the thin space between them. His eyes scanned the area around him, before stopping at an orange lump on the ground. He walked toward it carefully, his eyes never leaving the lump. Barely a few feet away now, Sasuke stared at the bloody fox in front of him. It was obviously a fox, and based on the gaping hole in it’s shoulder that made Sasuke want to vomit the longer he looked at it, the animal had been shot by a human. Sasuke growled at the thought. Hunters weren’t supposed to be anywhere near this area, and foxes weren’t supposed to be hunted at all. Here in Konoha, they were protected, thanks to the significance of the legend of the fox spirit. As he scanned the fox’s body, his eyes widened at the sight of the nine tails that lay limp on the ground. 

Well that… definitely wasn’t normal. Sasuke was no veterinarian, but he was pretty sure foxes only had one tail. Removing his sweater and wrapping it around the foxes body, he picked it up and began to run back towards the path. As he ran, he formulated a plan in his head. Sasuke never really believed in the story of the fox spirit, but now, as he held a nine tailed fox in his arms, he figured the least he could do was help the thing. After all, he’d seen enough festivals in his life to know what the legendary fox spirit looked like, and to know that this dying fox looked exactly like it.

Sasuke reached his car in record time, thankful that he hadn’t passed anyone during his sprint back to the car. Setting the silent animal down in his passenger seat, he grabbed his phone and called the first person he thought of.

“Hello?”

“Hey Sakura.”

“Sasuke? I thought you were going for a hike? What’s up?,” the pink haired girl sounded confused over the phone, obviously wondering why Sasuke had cut his beloved hike short.

“Are you alone in your apartment right now?,” Sasuke asked, ignoring her question in favor of asking his own.

“...Yes? Sasuke what’s going on?”  
“I’m coming over. Don’t freak out, okay?”

Sakura started to protest, but Sasuke ended the call, putting his phone down in favor of gripping the steering wheel with both hands. Every red light he paused to look over at the fox, who had long since stopped moaning in favor of a worrying silence. Sasuke arrived at Sakura’s apartment in record time. Pulling into a guest parking spot, Sasuke swaddled the fox in an emergency blanket he thanked the gods he kept in the back of his car, and hurried into the building. Ignoring the stare he got from the apartment manager, who he was thankful already knew him from his frequent trips to visit Sakura, Sasuke hopped into the elevator and pressed the button for the fourth floor. 

Sasuke knocked on the door aggressively, looking down worriedly at the fox that was very clearly close to death. Sakura opened her door almost immediately, her signature angry but worried look on her face. “What the hell Sasuke you-,” Sakura froze, staring at the fox head that poked out from the thick blanket. “I-,” for once, Sasuke was at a loss for words. “Can you help it?” Sakura stared at the worry clearly on the usually stoic boy’s face. She nodded quickly, her face hardening the way it always did when she treated people. “I’ll grab my stuff. Lay him down on the counter on top of the blanket.,” tying up her hair, she rushed over to him with her medical kit in hand. “I’m not a vet, but I’ll try to fix him up okay? Why didn’t you just…” Her words died in her throat as she stared at the numerous thick tails that lay attached to the orange creature. “Oh.” The pink haired girl stared for a moment longer before grabbing her kit. She worked in silence, and Sasuke stood next to her, handing her clean towels when she asked. When he wasn’t completing the various tasks Sakura requested him to do, his eyes never left the fox.

An hour later, Sakura washed her hands and removed her now blood stained kitchen apron, collapsing on the couch with a sigh. “He’ll pull through, but he’ll have to stay with you for a few weeks so I can remove the stitches once it’s healed.” Sasuke nodded, glancing at the fox who lay swaddled in a fresh blanket on the armchair next to the couch. Settling next to the girl, he sighed, thankful that the ordeal was over and the fox was okay. 

“So, care to explain why you rushed to my apartment with the  _ fucking fox spirit _ in your hands?” 

Sasuke closed his eyes wearily, “We don’t know it’s the fox spirit yet…”

“Sasuke it has nine fucking tails. How’re you gonna explain that?”

“Mutation?,” Sasuke said, shrugging his shoulders.

Sakura groaned, but nodded her head. “Sure, okay, let’s just… call it a mutation for now.” Switching the subject, she glanced over to the still asleep fox, then back at Sasuke. “How are you gonna keep it in your apartment?” Sasuke looked over at it as well, and shrugged. He honestly hadn’t thought of that. Sakura sighed again, but went silent. They sat there in a comfortable silence, both of wondering what the hell Sasuke had gotten them into. 

A sudden bark shook Sasuke from his thoughts. “What the fuck?,” He said, staring at Sakura. She just pointed over to the fox, who seemed to be awake. “I didn’t know foxes barked…,” he said, embarrassed at how the sudden noise had scared him. The fox looked over at them, and Sasuke tensed, the realization that he’d brought a wild fox into the apartment hitting him. Looking over at Sakura, he knew she was thinking the same thing. Bringing his eyes back to the animal, the two sat silently, waiting for the fox to make a move. It’s furry head looked around, staring at the two of them, before laying back down on the chair and closing its eyes. 

Sasuke let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding, and stood up. He had started his hike late in the afternoon, and now, hours later, it was starting to get dark out. Sasuke carefully picked up the fox before thanking Sakura, who quietly scolded him before smiling and bidding him good night. 

The ride home was silent, and for once, Sasuke was thankful for it. He wasn’t really sure what he was going to do with the animal; he didn’t even know if his apartment allowed pets for god's sake! Sighing, he pulled into his parking spot and grabbed the sleeping fox. Locking his door, he swiped his apartment card and entered the elevator, beginning the journey to the fifth floor. Moments later he arrived at his apartment, unlocking it quickly and entering the room.

His home was cozy and simple, and he prided himself on the comfy academic style it had. His living room walls were mostly covered in bookshelves, and there was a comfy leather couch in the middle of the room, with a fireplace across from it. There was a door in between two bookshelves, which led to a small office. His kitchen had an open floor plan, and was connected to the living room, and through a small hallway was his comfortable bedroom and bathroom, with a guest room and adjoining bathroom across from it. Dropping his keys at the door, he walked over to his bedroom. Suddenly hit with an immense weariness after the stress of the day, he gently placed the swaddled fox on the bed, before collapsing next to it. Closing his eyes, he embraced the comfort of a dreamless sleep. 

  
  



	2. Chapter 2

Sasuke blinked awake blearily, groaning at the sunlight that filtered through his curtains and temporarily blinded his tired eyes. Rolling over, he came face to face with the most beautiful man he’d ever seen in his entire life. The man looked young, probably around his age, with bright blonde hair and brown freckles that scattered across his face. A string of beads was around his neck, strung with sharp animal teeth, and he wore a loose white shirt, open to reveal tan skin that made Sasuke blush. Sasuke’s eyes went lower, staring at the loose red traditional style pants covering the blonde’s legs.  _ Who wears traditional clothing to bed…  _ Sasuke wondered, his eyes moving back up to the boy's face. His eyes widened as he stared at a pair of animal ears mixed in with the boy’s blonde hair, and the various orangey fox tails that wrapped around the blonde. Everything from the day before hit him, and he sat up, scrambling to get away from the man who he had definitely  _ not _ allowed into his home. Falling off the bed with a loud thump, Sasuke groaned and sat up, his eyes widening as they met blue ones.

“Um…?,” Sasuke said intelligently, staring at the now-awake boy. The other boy smiled brightly, and got out of bed to help him up. Sasuke grabbed the boy’s extended hand, trying to ignore the light blush that dusted his cheeks.  _ I never blush… _ he thought, but decided to ignore the thought in favor of figuring out who the hell this man was, and where  _ the fuck _ the fox he brought home was. “I’m Naruto, the fox spirit! Thanks for patching me up!,” the boy flashed a wide smile, and Sasuke swooned.  _ What the fuck is going on?  _ He thought wildly, swallowing nervously. “Um… are you the fox… thing i found in the forest?”  _ Wow great job Sasuke, he probably thinks you’re an idiot now. _ Sasuke groaned inwardly at his choice words. The blonde seemed unbothered. “Yup! Normally something as little as a gunshot wound wouldn’t hurt me, but that bullet was wrapped in incredibly dark power…,” Naruto’s smile dropped, and he seemed to get lost in thought. “Whatever shot that bullet was powerful, and definitely evil… it’s troubling me…” Sasuke listened to the boy mumble for a while, before deciding he needed coffee to process this.

“I’m going to go make some coffee… I can, um, make you some eggs or something?” The other boy nodded brightly, and followed Sasuke to the kitchen. Moments later they sat down together, Sasuke drinking his coffee and Naruto wolfing down his eggs. The side of his shirt had fallen off his shoulder, revealing the nasty stitches that kept his gunshot wound closed. The skin around it was purple and bruised, but it didn’t seem to bother the blonde. Sasuke gathered his thoughts before speaking, “So… you’re the fox spirit from that legend?” Swallowing quickly, Naruto nodded, “Yup! I’m the spirit that protects the Land of Fire, and the one that stopped the Gedo spirit that threatened our world.” Naruto smiled brightly once again, seemingly proud of his accomplishment. 

Sasuke took another sip of his coffee. “I thought you’d be a lot… bigger?” He thought aloud, remembering the boy's tiny form, which reminded him of a small-ish dog. Naruto scowled, “I’ll have you know I was in that form to conserve energy! My normal fox form is much larger!” Sasuke rolled his eyes, “Whatever you say dobe…” 

“Shut up teme! Like you can even turn into anything at all…” Sasuke scowled at that comment. “Not all of us are great and powerful spirits like you stupid.” He’d meant for this to be sarcastic, but Naruto flushed proudly at the comment. Rolling his eyes, he glanced back at the stitches on the blonde’s tan shoulders. “I suppose you’ll have to stay here until you heal up, since we have to remove your stitches. You can stay in the guest room, alright?” Naruto smiled and nodded brightly. “Thank you Sasuke!” Sasuke flushed, quickly gulping down the rest of his coffee and getting up hurriedly. 

“I won’t be very interesting, I’ve got tons of work for college…” Naruto nodded understandingly. “That’s alright, I don’t need much! You won’t even know I’m here!”  _ Somehow I seriously doubt that,  _ thought Sasuke, putting his dishes in the dishwasher and moving to collapse on the couch, grabbing his laptop from the coffee table. Opening it, he loaded up his mail app and checked his inbox. Groaning at the amount of work he had to do, he looked over at the blonde boy once more before getting to work.

The hours passed quickly, and soon it was around lunchtime. Sasuke stayed in his seat; on a normal day he barely kept up with his one meal a day rule, and today was no different. He heard shuffling, and suddenly felt weight on his head. Looking up, Sasuke came face to face with Naruto, who smiled down at him. Sasuke’s face erupted in a fiery blush at their proximity, and he looked away quickly. “Wha-What’s up?” 

“Aren’t you going to eat anything?,” said Naruto worriedly, “I mean, you didn’t have anything to eat for breakfast and you’ve been working awfully hard… I thought humans were supposed to eat lots!” Sasuke’s brows furrowed at the last comment. “What do you mean? Do you not eat anything?” 

“Oh, us spirits don’t need to eat anything to survive, but that doesn’t mean we don’t enjoy a good meal now and then. Unfortunately, the only time spirits like me can eat human food is when offerings at temples and such are given to us, since it’s a little hard to be inconspicuous with these,” he gestured to his ears and tails before continuing, “Wait a minute… don’t change the subject! Don’t you need to eat something? You didn’t even eat dinner last night…” 

Sasuke rolled his eyes. “I have to finish this paper first, then I’ll make some lunch, okay?” Naruto smiled and nodded happily. Sasuke watched as the other boy walked over to the front of the couch, and yelped in surprise as in a flash the same small fox he’d saved the day before sat before him. “Warn me next time!,” Sasuke said, annoyed and a little embarrassed at his own yelp. The small fox barked once before curling up next to Sasuke, resting his head on the pale boy’s leg. Sasuke blushed, and gently stroked the fox’s fuzzy head before going back to his work. 

It was almost dark by the time the fox’s head finally moved from it’s stop on his leg, and Sasuke watched as the fox yawned, and stretched it’s legs. Sasuke watched as the small animal looked around, and saw that the sun was setting. It began to yap angrily, and Sasuke watched, confused.  _ What the…? _ In a flash the blonde boy appeared again, pointing accusingly at Sasuke. “You! You told me you’d eat some lunch, and now it’s dinner time and you still haven’t eaten anything! I knew I shouldn’t have fallen asleep!” Sasuke sighed, and closed his laptop. “Alright alright I’m sorry okay? I’ll eat something now.” The blonde boy nodded happily, a smile immediately appearing on his face. Sasuke rolled his eyes, trying to ignore the warm feeling that appeared in his chest at the thought that the boy cared so much about his health. 

The two of them sat at Sasuke’s dining table, Naruto watching happily as Sasuke wolfed down a bowl of chicken salad. “I knew you were hungry! You should drink some water, you haven't had any all day…” Sasuke rolled his eyes, but got up to fill a large glass with water. Naruto’s smile only grew, bringing back the warm feeling in Sasuke’s chest. “I’ll probably be up late tonight, so don’t bother staying up, alright?” Naruto looked confused, “Why? You’ve been working all day…” Sasuke sighed, “I know, but I went to bed early yesterday and fell behind. I’m in college, which means lots of work to do.” Naruto nodded, looking slightly crestfallen. 

Sasuke paused on his walk back to his seat, ruffling Naruto's blonde hair. “Don’t worry, I’ll be fine, okay? I just have to do some extra work since I have a class tomorrow afternoon.” Naruto brightened, “Can I come with you?” Sasuke shook his head, “I’m sorry Naruto; if it was just your ears you could just wear a hat, but I don’t know how to cover your tail… You’ll have to stay home. But I’ll only be gone for a few hours, okay?” Naruto nodded. “Okay.,” he said softly, sounding sad. Sasuke took his seat, feeling bad that he had to crush the boy’s dreams like that. “Don’t worry, I’ll finish all my work tonight, and then tomorrow before my class we can do something fun, alright?” Naruto brightened, a big smile adorning his face once again. “Okay Sasuke!”

After dinner, Sasuke grabbed his laptop and moved to his office. He settled into the chair, and began to work. Barely 10 minutes later, he heard the door open quietly, and felt a sudden warmth at his feet. Looking down, he smiled softly at the fox who lay on top of his feet under the desk. Bending down to rub the fox’s ears, he traced the animal’s features for a moment before turning back to his work.  _ I don’t want him to leave.  _ The thought was so sudden and unexpected that Sasuke froze, staring at the creature under his desk. 

It had only been a day, but somehow he’d grown immensely attached to the fox spirit. Sasuke put his head in his hands and groaned. He pushed the feeling down to the bottom of his heart, hoping to lock it away forever. His feelings didn’t matter at all. The fox spirit had responsibilities. It was natural he would leave. Sasuke knew the spirit had fast healing, so it would probably be a few days before the blonde left, and that would be that. 

His desperate attempt at rationalizing the situation only left him feeling empty, and Sasuke wished the feeling would go away. Groaning again, he lifted his head from his hands and threw himself into his work, hoping to quell the hopeless thoughts in his head. 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am not basing Naruto’s fox spirit characteristics/powers on kitsunes/actual fox spirit capabilities, and any similarities between the fox spirit legends and Naruto’s fox spirit legend/powers are purely coincidental! If any of this seems offensive in any way, please tell me and I will change it immediately! I’m writing this purely for enjoyment and don’t want anyone to be upset :)


	3. Chapter 3

Sasuke awoke in his bed, unsure how he’d even gotten there considering he was pretty sure he’d fallen asleep at his desk. He stared at the blonde next to him. This time, he knew exactly who it was, and rolled his eyes at the drooling boy. Untangling his arm from the orange tail that had been wrapped around it, Sasuke poked the blonde until he woke with a groan. “S’suke?” Sasuke’s heartbeat doubled at the sound of his name sleepily uttered from the tired boy’s lips. “How’d I get here?” 

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, how’d I get in bed? And I thought I showed you where the guest room is, so why’re you here with me?”

The blonde flushed, and cracked a nervous grin, “When you fell asleep, I brought you here! And I’m here cause…,” Naruto trailed off, his tails moving in front of his face, effectively hiding it from Sasuke.

“Because?”

“I...I didn’t like the other room.”  
Sasuke was confused. “What’s not to like?”

“I got lonely.” Naruto said this quietly, barely above a whisper. Two of his tails moved, and his blue eyes peaked out from in between them. Sasuke was blushing horribly, and rolled over to mash his face into the pillow. “Go back to sleep teme. I’m tired.” Sasuke felt the other boy relax next to him, and he closed his eyes, still trying to calm his still pounding heart as he drifted off to sleep.

An hour later, Sasuke finally rolled out of bed to start his day. He tiptoed out of the room, careful not to wake the still sleeping blonde. It was already 11:00, an hour before he needed to go to his class. Grabbing his phone, he sat down at the counter with a mug of coffee and checked his notifications. Unsurprisingly, he had missed a call from Sakura. He quickly hit her contact, and waited for the pink haired girl to pick up. The first ring had barely finished when Sakura’s voice filled the room. “Sasuke! How’s the fox? Are the stitches okay? Did you have to call animal control? Is it wild?” Sasuke moved the phone farther away from his ear, rolling his eyes with a small smile. Her questions were neverending, and her voice seemed to get louder with each one. 

“ It’s fine Sakura, actually… he’s not a fox.” 

“What the hell do you mean it’s not it’s not a fox? Looked pretty foxy to me!”

“I mean, he turned into a guy when I woke up.”

“ _ What _ ?” Sasuke turned down the volume and moved the phone even further away from his ear.

“Sasuke, you sound crazy. Are you sick?,” Sakura asked worriedly, her motherly tone immediately kicking in at the thought of him being sick.

“Come see for yourself. We both have class at 12:00, so you can drive me there after.”

“Alright… but I’m bringing some medicine!”

Sasuke huffed a laugh and ended the call, turning back to his neglected coffee. “Who was that?” Sasuke turned to see a sleepy Naruto, who entered the room rubbing his eyes. “Sakura,” he answered, smiling softly at the blonde, “She’s coming over to see you. Oh shit! Is that okay?” 

Naruto smiled, “Yeah, she’s the pink haired girl right? The one who patched me up?” Sasuke nodded. 

“Then it’s fine, since she’s already seen me. The only reason most people only remember me as a myth right now is cause I wanted to lay low. People don’t like things they don’t understand, which includes magical spirits.” Naruto stayed smiling, despite the heavy topic. 

Sasuke nodded understandingly. “Alright, well she’ll be here in like 5 minutes, and she’ll probably want to examine you now that you’re human. She’s studying to be a doctor, so she goes wild over this kind of stuff.” Naruto nodded happily. “Fine with me!”

When Sakura arrived, Naruto was sitting on the couch, slightly bouncing with anticipation. Sasuke would be too, he supposed, after hiding from people for centuries. Opening the door, Sakura immediately put her hand on Sasuke's forehead. “Hmm… no fever…” Sasuke groaned. “See for yourself Sakura, he’s right there…” Sasuke turned to introduce the blonde to the girl, but instead of Naruto’s human form, the fox’s small form sat on the couch, it’s head cocked to one side. “ _ Naruto _ ! You’re so annoying dobe! Turn back right now so Sakura can meet you.”

Sakura stared at Sasuke worriedly. “Sasuke...Who’s Naruto? Are you sure you’re feeling alright?” Sasuke ignored Sakura, instead marching over to the fox. He glared at the fox, waiting with his arms crossed as the nine tailed fox transformed back into his human form. Sakura gasped, stumbling back into the wall. “What the-” Sasuke ignored Sakura, continuing to glare at the sheepish blonde. “Sorry Sasuke… I overheard your conversation and couldn’t help it! She really thought you were crazy!,” Naruto laughed, walking over to meet the pink haired girl. 

Sasuke watched as Sakura shook the blonde’s hand, having recovered from the initial shock. “Alright alright, now that I know Sasuke isn’t crazy, I’ll have to perform a quick examination to check on your stitches and make sure you’re healing properly.” Naruto nodded, and moved to sit down on the couch. The blonde removed his shirt, and Sasuke blushed, trying not to stare at the other boy’s tan abs. 

Sakura knelt beside Naruto, staring at the stitches in surprise. “At the rate you’re healing, you’ll be ready to leave in a week! Normally this kind of thing would take a month to heal…” She stared at the scar, mumbling to herself quietly. “Normally, the bullet wouldn’t even penetrate my skin,” Naruto said brightly, “but whatever dark magic it was made out of helped it go clean through, and is slowing down my regeneration.” Sakura nodded, writing some stuff down on her phone. 

_ Only a week left with him… _ Sasuke sighed. He’d been hoping to spend more time with the other boy… Checking the time, he realized it was time to go. “Sakura,” he cut through the girl’s muttering, “It’s time to go.” She nodded quickly, and quickly said goodbye to the blonde. Naruto waved, and the two students exited the apartment. Sasuke spent the whole car ride listening to Sakura’s theories on the fox spirit’s body and accelerated healing. Not that he wasn’t interested in how Naruto’s body worked of course, but Sasuke was more worried about how the volpine boy was doing alone in his apartment. Based on their short time together, Naruto seemed to hate being left alone. Sasuke wasn’t sure if it was because the blonde had been alone for so long, or perhaps because he’d grown attached to the pale boy, (Sasuke hoped it was the latter), but either way he hoped the class didn’t run late. 

Sasuke thanked Sakura quickly before rushing back to his apartment. His class had run late, and then he’d stopped to meet with Kakashi-sensei for office hours. Kakashi was the head of the law department in the institution, as well as Sasuke’s constitutional law professor, and the two of them had developed a close friendship during his years at college. Sasuke knocked quietly before entering the apartment. He quietly took off his shoes, assuming the blonde boy was asleep. He seemed to sleep a lot, Sasuke assumed it was because of his fox-like characteristics, and resolved to ask the other boy about it later. 

Walking through the apartment, Sasuke opened the guest room quietly, but was surprised to find the bedroom empty. Sighing, he remembered his conversation with the boy this morning and turned to the door to his own room. He quietly entered the room, and waited for his eyes to adjust to the dark room. Naruto must have closed his blackout curtains, since outside the sun wouldn’t set for another hour or so. Sasuke gasped as he looked around, his eyes fully adjusted to the absence of light. 

His closet doors were strewn open, clothes were tossed out and piled on top of his bed in a strange lump. There, in the middle of the lump was Naruto, who lay sleeping softly with Sasuke’s biggest hoodie encompassing his body. Sasuke blushed wildly. Was the other boy really that lonely without him? Walking over to the sleeping blonde, he gently shook him awake. “Naruto? Are you alright?” Naruto shot awake, wrapping his arms around Sasuke and pulling him onto the bed. “I got lonely.,” he said simply, shoving his head deeper into Sasuke’s shoulder. Sasuke huffed a laugh, wrapping his arms around the boy, “So you pulled all my clothes out of my closet?” “They smell like you.,” Naruto responded, his voice muffled against Sasuke’s chest. Sasuke’s face got even redder, if that was even possible, and he smiled. 

He was about to untangle himself from the other boy to go make dinner when he remembered his question. “Hey Naruto?” The other boy hummed to show he heard him. “How come you sleep so much? Is it cause of your fox-like characteristics?” Naruto was silent for a moment, and Sasuke worried he’d mentioned something uncomfortable. “I suppose it’s because I haven’t slept in a while. Fox spirits can stay awake for weeks without sleep, so long as they can crash afterwards. There was something worrying me in the forest, so I stayed awake to stay on guard and try to investigate. I was nearing my 6th week without sleep when I was shot; I suppose that’s why the bullet managed to hit me. Now that I’m with you, I feel safe enough to sleep for extended periods of time to recuperate.” 

Sasuke stayed silent, taking in this new information. “How long until you’re completely rested? Naruto thought for a moment. “Probably about 3 weeks from now.” Sasuke swallowed nervously. This was his chance to stay with Naruto for longer! “You’re welcome to stay here until you’re fully rested…?” Naruto rolled off of him to stare at the pale boy. “You’d let me?” He asked, and Sasuke nodded, smiling softly. “It’s nice having you around.” Naruto smiled happily and wrapped the dark haired in another tight embrace. 

They sat there for a moment, before Sasuke broke the silence. “I know you don’t need to eat, but do you want to order some food?” Naruto broke into a smile, “Sure!” The two of them left the messy bedroom, and Naruto collapsed on the couch with a happy sigh. Sasuke shoved the volpine boy’s legs to the side, and sat down next to him, grabbing his phone to order something to eat. He blushed lightly when he felt the other boy’s legs drape across his lap, and tried to ignore the burning sensation when Naruto’s tails curled around his arm. 

“What do you want to get?,” Sasuke asked, scrolling through the various delivery restaurants. “Can we get ramen?,” asked the other boy, his eyes sparkling. “S-sure.” Sasuke was surprised at how immediate the response was, and resolved to make ramen for the other boy sometime. Handing his phone over to the blonde, he absentmindedly pet the other boy’s tail as he waited for him to order. 

Less than an hour later, a doorbell signified the arrival of the food, and Sasuke thanked the delivery man, placing the ramen on the table before turning to wake the other boy. He was surprised to see Naruto was already up, the smell of Ramen making the blonde moan as he rushed over to sit at the table. Sasuke, smiled softly, and handed the boy the large bowl. He watched in surprise as Naruto gulped down the bowl, eating incredibly fast and only pausing to happily sigh, obviously feeling pure bliss at the taste of what was very clearly his favorite food. Sasuke ate his own food quickly as well, the emptiness of his stomach finally affecting him. 

Once both bowls were empty, Sasuke asked his most important question. “Um, Naruto? How old are you really?” Naruto looked up, his eyes wide, seemingly caught off guard. 

“You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to I just thought because-” 

“No!” Sasuke was silenced immediately. “Um, I just meant it doesn’t bother me, I just wasn’t expecting the question.” Naruto stared at his empty bowl for a moment before continuing. “I’m only 21.”

“But that means you’re the same age as me?” Sasuke was incredibly confused. How could the fox spirit be alive for centuries but only be 21 years old?

“The fox spirit doesn’t live forever. It’s reincarnated each time it dies, chosen by the gods as the one who will ensure peace in the Land of Fire. Once a baby is chosen, the power of the gods is given to that baby and it’s parent’s are killed immediately. All memories of their family are wiped, and the baby is removed from civilization and grows up protected by the Konoha forest. Somewhere between the ages of 18 and 21 I’m supposed to regain the memories of my past lives, but I haven’t gotten them yet.”

Sasuke stared at the blonde in silence “So… your parents are…?” Naruto nodded quietly. “I’m so sorry.” The blonde shook his head gently. “It’s alright, I don’t have any memories of them either, so I can’t really miss them.” Those words only made Sasuke feel worse, and he cursed himself for bringing it up. Sasuke began to clear their dishes, and Naruto stood up as well, helping the pale boy clean the kitchen before he began his work for the night.

“You’re very well versed in the human world for someone who grew up in the forest.” Sasuke smiled, trying to make the boy feel better. It seemed to work as the blonde grinned happily, “I was taught about the world by an old man named Iruka! Usually the fox spirit is allowed to enter society and learn about the world themselves, but times have changed and the fox spirit’s role has become one hidden in the shadows. Instead, a man deemed worthy by the forest itself was allowed to meet me, and taught me about the world and it’s language. Iruka visited me every week until I knew everything I needed to know, and he disappeared. I assume the gods erased his memory of me in order to keep me safe.” Naruto’s smile disappeared at the thought of Iruka’s lost memories, and Sasuke felt the overwhelming urge to do  _ something _ , to show the other boy he wasn’t alone anymore. Walking over to where Naruto stood, he wrapped his arms around the volpine boy and held him close. “I’m sorry.,” he whispered softly, and the other boy shook his head. “I’m alright.” Sasuke only shook his head in return and held the blonde tighter.

They stood there, holding each other, for a moment longer, before Sasuke broke away. He flashed a soft smile, which was immediately returned by the blonde boy. “I need to work on another thing for criminal law, but if I grab my laptop I can work on it from the bed.” Naruto smiled brightly, and followed Sasuke as he grabbed his things and entered the bedroom. Naruto flushed at the sight of the giant pile of clothes, and began to apologize profusely. “It’s okay teme. Seriously!” Sasuke whacked him on the head gently, and the other boy apologized once more before the two of them began to put the clothes away. Once the task was complete and the room was clean once more, they crawled into bed and Sasuke opened his laptop to begin his work. 

It was hours into the night, and Sasuke had taken a break from his work to stare at the blonde next to him. After falling asleep almost immediately, the other boy had curled up, tangling his legs with Sasuke’s and his hand holding Sasuke’s arm in a way that made it harder to write, though the dark haired boy refused to remove it. Naruto’s blonde hair was all over, and his ears seemed more noticeable, twitching occasionally as Naruto dreamed. His various tails were sprawled around him, and Sasuke stared at the way his chest rose and fell in tune with his inaudible breathing. Sasuke smiled as he realized the blonde was still wearing Sasuke’s sweatshirt, and resolved to say nothing about it in the hopes that Naruto would continue wearing it. 

It was almost sunrise when he finally finished his work, and closing it, he placed it on his bedside table before sliding fully under the covers and drifting off to sleep.

When Sasuke awoke, tired from his late night but knowing he had no time to sleep in if he wanted to make it to his morning class, he also realized he was incredibly warm. Opening his eyes, he realized he was incredibly intimately cuddling with the blonde, every limb was tangled with Naruto’s, and every inch of his body was flush against the other boy. Blushing furiously because this definitely did not seem like something normal friends did, Sasuke carefully and quietly untangled himself from the fox spirit and quickly placed a note explaining he’d gone to class next to Naruto. Grabbing a to-go cup of coffee, he pulled on his shoes and left for class.


	4. Chapter 4

The rest of the week passed by seemingly quickly. The two boys fell into a simple routine. If Sasuke had morning class, Naruto slept until the other boy arrived back home, where Sasuke would read a book and Naruto would learn more about the world around him. They would have dinner together every night, talking about this and that before Sasuke threw himself into his work once again while Naruto slept beside him. If Sasuke had afternoon class, the two boys would sleep in together, and then Naruto would roam the house until Sasuke arrived back home and they ate dinner and relaxed before Sasuke began his work. 

On Friday afternoon, Sasuke arrived home from his last class of the week, and dropped his bag on the floor of the entryway, completely pissed off by the way the class had played out. After a mind blowingly boring lecture, he’d gotten lucky enough to be paired up with the only boy he didn’t like for a huge project. The thought of interacting with the strange boy put him in an even fouler mood, and he quickly scanned the room for his blonde roommate. He found the volpine boy cuddled on the couch, a book in his hand, and with an overdramatic groan he walked over and fell onto the couch, his head in the other boy’s lap. “Sasuke?” Naruto asked, and Sasuke groaned in response. “What’s wrong?” “I got stuck in a group project with Gaara.” He groaned again, annoyed at the mere thought of the abnormal boy. 

“Who’s Gaara?” Sasuke sighed, rolling over so he could see the other boy, ignoring the flush of embarrassment when he realized he had literally mushed his face into the volpine boy’s lap. Naruto’s tails moved to wrap around Sasuke gently, making him feel incredibly comfortable and warm. “Gaara’s a really weird kid in my criminal law class. He’s really off putting, and I really didn’t want to have to see him outside of class  _ ever _ .” Naruto smiled, his hands moving to run through Sasuke’s dark hair. “Are you gonna bring him here?” Sasuke’s eyes widened, “What? No! It would be impossible to hide you, plus I don’t want him to know where I live!” Naruto giggled at Sasuke’s horror. “As long as you stick to a nice public place, he can’t do anything creepy. And, you can always have me call you and cry over the phone until you just  _ have  _ to excuse yourself and run to my rescue.” Sasuke grinned, laughing a little at the thought. 

The two boys spent the rest of the night playing a zombie game Sasuke had brought home as a present for the other boy, and it was late in the night when they finally removed themselves from the comfort of the couch, cleaned up their quick dinner, and went to take shower. Sasuke finished quickly, and collapsed on his bed with a yawn. Grabbing his phone, he scrolled through twitter as he waited for the other to finish. Scrolling through a twitter thread on the Uchiha Corporation, he wondered what Itachi was up to. 

His older brother had become the sole director of the corporation after an unknown man murdered the entire board of directors, including his parents. Sasuke had been much too young to take over as a fellow director, so Itachi stepped up to the task at only 19. The older boy had adjusted quickly, and excelled at his role in the company. Sasuke was allowed to pursue law school, as long as he took his rightful position in the Corporation once he was finished. A sudden dip in the bed moved Sasuke’s eyes from the screen, and the dark haired boy looked over to see Naruto climbing in next to him. Shutting off his phone, Sasuke turned to look at the other boy. His blonde hair was still wet from his shower, and he had on another one of Sasuke’s sweaters. “Do you want to go on a hike with me this weekend? I don’t have much work besides that project, and if we go far enough out you can stretch your legs without worrying about other people seeing you.” Naruto smiled and nodded happily, rolling over to hug the pale boy. “...Naruto?” Sasuke’s cheeks flushed pink as he slowly reciprocated the sudden embrace. “Sorry,” the other boy mumbled into Sasuke’s chest, “I just felt like hugging you.” Sasuke nodded, as if this was a perfectly acceptable reason for two roommates to be cuddling in their shared bed. Sasuke untangled an arm to turn off the lamp, and the two of them fell asleep tangled together. Their position was purely for mutual comfort, he told himself as he drifted off. 

Sasuke woke up with a start, looking around the dark room blearily. His dream had been quite nice, he’d been picking strange berries for extra credit, and when he’d eaten one it made him grow wings. Yawning, Sasuke wondered what had shook him awake. Wondering if it was Naruto, he glanced over at the boy’s side of the bed, but found only empty sheets beside him. Confused and a bit worried, Sasuke slipped out of bed and searched the room. Finding nothing, he went out into the hallway of his apartment. “Naruto?” There was no response. A shiver ran through his body as he entered his kitchen, which was void of the blonde fox spirit. His search moved to the guest room, which he entered quietly in case Naruto had decided to sleep there. The spare room was incredibly cold, and Sasuke wrapped his arms around his chest in an effort to prevent his small amount of body heat from escaping. The bathroom door was wide open, and the shower was running. Sasuke stood there hesitantly. Was Naruto… taking a shower? 

Once again he was reminded of a horror movie scene, and he almost turned around and went right back to bed. Rolling his eyes at his own stupidity, he knocked hesitantly on the door frame, not looking inside in case Naruto was showering for some unknown reason. He listened quietly for an answer, but to his surprise received a sob in response. It sounded so utterly broken and defeated, Sasuke was disturbed that such a noise could possibly come from the smiley blonde. Walking in, he stared at the unsettling scene before him. Naruto lay huddled in the shower in nothing but his boxers, his unrestrained sobs shaking the pale boy to his core. His hands were clamped tightly over his ears, and he was shaking violently. Kneeling in front of the open shower door, Sasuke reached a hand out to touch the other boy, but pulled back immediately when the water hit his skin. It was  _ freezing. _ Looking closer at the volpine boy, he realized his usually tan skin was paler than Sasuke’s own, (which said a lot), and his lips were a deep blue. 

Immediately, Sasuke reached around the boy and turned off the shower’s icy stream, before moving his hand to rest on the other boy’s shoulder. Naruto only sobbed harder and ripped his body from the other’s hand, broken words interrupted by heavy sobs as pulled at his own skin. “Blood… everywhere… all over-  _ GET IT... OFF!”  _ Sasuke didn’t know what to do. What was going on? His own body began to shake, scared and worried as he watched the other boy shiver and sob. “Naruto… please, let me help you.” He reached over again, but the other boy screamed, and he withdrew immediately. Tears began to stream down his own face, the other boy’s actions were scaring him, and he realized the situation was far beyond his own control. Sakura… he needed Sakura. He whispered comforts at the other boy, promising him he would be right back as he rushed back into his bedroom. 

Grabbing his phone, he dialed her number, calling over and over until the ring was interrupted by her very annoyed voice. “Sasuke, wha-” “Sakura,” he breathed in relief, running back to the bathroom where Naruto lay sobbing. “Sasuke what’s going on? Who’s crying? Are you alright?” Sasuke, in his moment of weakness, allowed a single sob to escape his lips. “I-I don’t know, I woke up and he was gone and I looked for him and he was in the shower in his boxers and- oh god Sakura I don’t know what to do. You’ve gotta help him, he’s crying; screaming about blood but I don’t see any and I’m scared.” Sakura audibly swallowed. “Alright. We’ll help him, okay?” “Okay.” He knelt down in front of the blond again, both hands raised but neither moving. 

“Naruto, Naruto look at me. Please, at least put something on! You’re shivering, Naruto please.” His pleas fell on deaf ears as the other boy sobbed loudly, mushed into the far corner of the shower. The volpine boy’s fingernails raked his own skin, leaving deep red marks despite Sasuke’s cries to stop. “Sakura, Sakura he’s hurting himself, what do I do?” Sakura’s voice did not waiver as she replied, “Don’t crowd him, you need to move away and ask him what he needs. It could be sensory overload, or an intense panic attack. Either way, anything we do to help could make it worse. You  _ need _ to get him to tell you what he needs.” “O-okay.” 

Sasuke sat next to the blonde, and waited for the other boy to pause his sobs to catch his breath. “Naruto, tell me what you need, please?” The shaky boy looked up, and gasped for breath. “I-I don’t know.  _ I don’t know? _ ” Another confused sob escaped Naruto’s mouth before he spoke again. “I need- I need pressure.” Sasuke stared, confused, but nodded quickly. The other boy was hyperventilating, and Sasuke scooted forward. The cold puddle of water left in the shower soaked through his clothes, but the pale boy ignored the freezing feeling. Grabbing the other boy, he wrapped Naruto in a tight embrace. He squeezed as hard as he could, but it didn’t feel like enough. “Sakura, he says he needs pressure, what do I do?” “Lay on top of him, carefully, but do it slowly, and listen for any signs that he’s not comfortable.” Sasuke followed Sakura’s orders, moving the other boy onto the bathroom floor and laying on top of him, wrapping the blond’s body in a tight embrace.

The boy’s sobs began to subside, and his rambling scared words became comprehensible. “I’m a murderer… there’s so much blood… where’s Junitsu?” Naruto cried names of people Sasuke didn’t know, and spoke of battles that Sasuke had never heard of. “I remember… I remember everything.” The blond mumbled, and Sasuke understood. The fox spirit had regained his memories.

Sasuke lay there for what felt like hours, pressing his body against the other boy’s and listening to his ragged frantic breathing morph into slow quiet breaths. Once he was sure the other boy was completely asleep, he carefully rolled his body off of the blond and onto the cool tile floor. Sighing with relief, he turned on his side to stare at his friend.  _ What kind of memories did he gain?  _ Sasuke tried to imagine what it would be like, to suddenly gain thousands of years of memories in one night. He supposed he would have reacted the same way. Sasuke sat up, suddenly remembering the pink haired girl that was probably still on the other end of the phone. Grabbing the phone from it’s spot a few feet away, he was unsurprised to see the dead battery symbol flashing on it’s screen. 

Resolving to send her a text that everything was okay, he put it in the pocket of his sweater and knelt next to the sleeping blonde. Slowly so as not to wake him, Sasuke picked up the other boy, sliding one arm under his knees and the other on his back, and walked carefully back to their room. Laying him on the bed, he grabbed a fresh sweater and sweatpants and put them on the blond before pulling the covers over him and crawling into bed himself.  _ I’m comforting him, as his friend, _ he thought as he pulled the other boy flush against his own body, tangling their fingers together tightly. Sasuke was glad he’d been there for the blond when he’d regained his memories; as he drifted off to sleep his last thought was the image of the sobbing boy alone in the forest. 

~~~~~~

“In my last life, I remember a man named Jiraiya. I need to find him, if he’s still alive. I think he’s supposed to help me.” 

“There’s a Jiraiya at Konoha University. Kakashi-sensei can introduce the two of you.”

The two boys sat on the couch, Sasuke nursing his coffee mug while Naruto played with one of his tails nervously. After waking up, Naruto had explained to him that while he now remembered everything from his past lives, he was nowhere near his previous power levels, and was adamant about becoming stronger in order to protect the Land of Fire. 

“Can you meet with Kakashi today? Now that I know someone might be able to help me, I would really like to figure out how to hide the ears and tails.” Sasuke looked up in surprise. “The past fox spirits could do that?” Naruto nodded. “Once I figure out how, I’ll be able to go with you outside!” Sasuke smiled, excited at the thought of going to public places with the blond. “I’ll text Kakashi-sensei and explain the situation. I just hope he doesn’t think it’s a prank…” 

Grabbing his phone, he clicked on Kakashi’s contact and sent him a series of texts. Less than ten minutes later he received a response from the professor. 

“ _ Sasuke, I can meet you at my office in 30 minutes. If it turns out you were just incredibly drunk when you texted this, despite it being 10 a.m., and make me drive there for nothing, you’ll have a 40 page paper assignment to turn in to me, due in one week’s time. See you there. _ ”

Sasuke smiled at the response, thankful that his professor trusted him enough to go to his office on a Saturday morning. “Kakashi answered, let me get ready to go real quick and then we’ll head out, okay?” Naruto nodded, and the two of them hopped off the couch to get ready. Naruto quickly transformed into his nine-tailed fox form, and hopped into Sasuke’s empty backpack. They’d decided this would be safer after Naruto was almost seen by Sasuke’s neighbors, who’d been leaving their apartment at the same moment. 

Once they arrived at the safety of Sasuke’s car, Naruto immediately transformed back to his normal form, excited for his first car ride - well, in this life- where he wasn’t close to death or passed out. The 5 minute drive was a strange one, and Sasuke watched as Naruto asked him about every button in his car, and waved at other cars that passed by them. 

Pulling into an open parking spot in front of the law department, Sasuke carefully grabbed his once again Naruto filled backpack and locked his car before walking up the steps to the building’s entrance. The halls were pretty empty, and Sasuke was thankful for that as he tried to discreetly push the fox spirit’s head back inside the backpack. After giving up on pushing the curious fox’s head back inside, he picked up his pace, careful to stop and turn towards people when they walked by him in order to hide the spirit. He reached Kakashi’s and exhaled a thankful breath; no one - he hoped- had seen the fox in his backpack. He knocked lightly on the door, and upon approval, entered the spacious office. 

“Sasuke! I honestly thought you weren’t going to show up. I was preparing to send you the rubrik for the paper when you knocked.” The pale boy rolled his eyes at his older teacher, before sitting down. “Of course I came, I told you I would, didn’t I?” Kakashi’s eyes were bright with humor as he looked around. “So, where’s this fox of yours?” Unzipping his backpack, he allowed Naruto to pop his head out, looking at Sasuke and waiting for his silent nod before jumping onto the floor. “This,” Sasuke paused as Naruto transformed into his human form, “is Naruto the fox spirit who protects the Land of Fire.” 

The dark haired boy reveled in his professor’s silent stare, his normally stoic face revealing obvious surprise. Recovering quickly, Kakashi held out his hand, which the blonde quickly took. “You didn’t really explain much about what’s going on,” Kakashi said, never taking his eyes off the volpine boy, “why don’t you both sit down and explain things.” Naruto took the seat next to Sasuke, and the two quickly explained how they’d met and how Naruto had regained the memories of his past lives. “He needs to find a man named Jiraiya, who apparently learned things from the last fox spirit and will help Naruto enhance his powers and hide his ears and tails.,” Sasuke finished, looking over at Naruto to make sure he hadn’t missed anything in his explanation.

Kakashi nodded sagely, tapping his chin thoughtfully. “I only know one Jiraiya, and he’s the head of the history and culture department. If you’d like, I’ll call him and set up a meeting with the two of you.” Naruto smiled brightly and nodded, “Thank you Kakashi-sensei!” Kakashi smiled at the boy’s bubbly excitement. “My pleasure. It’s not every day you meet the legendary fox spirit. Who would have thought grumpy loner Sasuke would let someone into his life like this.” Sasuke rolled his eyes in annoyance. “I’m not a grumpy loner…,” he replied, glaring at Kakashi, who just smiled back. 

“Wait here for a moment, I’ll call Jiraiya over and see if he’s the right guy.” Sasuke nodded, and he sat next to Naruto while Kakashi called Jiraiya. Instead of listening in on Kakashi’s boring conversation, Sasuke opted to watch Naruto, who was taking in the room around him in awe. Sasuke couldn’t tease him for it, as he’d done the same when he’d first visited the professor's office. One wall was covered by a giant chalkboard, which had various laws and thoughts written out in Kakashi’s messy handwriting. In front of the chalkboard wall was a large oak desk, at which the professor sat at the moment. Naruto and Sasuke were sitting in the two comfortable armchairs that faced the desk in front, and the wall behind them was covered in a giant bookshelf, a rolling ladder attached to reach the higher shelves. What really interested Sasuke, however, were the various paintings that adorned the other two walls. They were all signed by the same name, and many of them were of Kakashi himself, next to a brunette who Sasuke didn’t recognize.  _ Must not have a job at the University. _ Sasuke thought to himself. 

Turning back to the professor, he watched as the man said his goodbye’s and put the phone down. “What a strange man…,” the gray haired professor mused, and Sasuke wondered what had happened during their conversation to make him think that. “Alrighty then you two, Jiraiya will be over soon, so you’ll just have to wait here until then.” Sasuke nodded, and Naruto bounced out of his seat excitedly. “I wonder what he’s gonna be like Sasuke! Do you think he’s really old? I hope he’s not mean! Did he sound mean on the phone?” Naruto asked, quickly turning his attention from Sasuke to Kakashi, his eyes wide in excitement and nervousness. “He sounded perfectly nice.,” Kakashi answered, smiling softly in return. 

_ The older professor seemed to do a lot of smiling around Naruto _ , Sasuke thought.  _ But then again, so do I,  _ he reminded himself, glancing at the blonde boy curiously. The fox spirit seemed to have some sort of strange ability to make people smile. 

An hour later, Jiraiya had still not arrived, and Naruto had switched back into his nine tails form, now sleeping peacefully on Sasuke’s lap. Sasuke ignored the professor’s knowing look as he absently ran his fingers through the boy’s reddish fur, admiring it’s silky texture. “You seem to have grown attached, huh Sasuke?,” said Kakashi, finally breaking their comfortable silence. “Shut up.,” Sasuke responded, glaring at the teacher. Kakashi only smiled back. 

“It’s alright. Your secret’s safe with me,” he zipped his lips and laughed a little. Sasuke only glared harder. “Though…,” the professor continued, ignoring Sasuke’s intense look, “he seems to have grown attached to you as well.” Sasuke’s ears reddened at the man’s comment. “We’re just friends, that’s all.,” Sasuke said, dropping his glare as he scratched Naruto’s fox ears. “I never suggested you were anything more.,” Kakashi replied, “...I wonder why your brain jumped immediately to lovers when I said that?” Sasuke glared, his face reddening slightly. Kakashi raised an eyebrow. “Ah well, I’m sure you could ask someone from the psychology department… they’d be more than happy to explain their theories on the matter.” “I hate you.” 

Kakashi chuckled at Sasuke’s gruff response. He opened his mouth to say more on the matter, but suddenly the door swung open with a loud bang. Sasuke whipped his head around to stare at the man in the doorway in surprise.. Kakashi smiled; “Hello, Jiraiya.”

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> I hope you all enjoyed! Chapters will get much longer as the work progresses, and I'll most likely update frequently since I really enjoy writing this au :)


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